


BUTTON 
GWINNETT 

Man of Mystery. 



Member of the Continental Congress. 

Signer of the Declaration of Independence. 

President of the Provincial Council of Georgia. 




A Brief Biographical Review 



BY 



William Montgomery Clemens 



1931 

WILLIAM M. CLEMENS 

Publisher 



POMPTON LAKES, N. J. 



BUTTON 
GWINNETT 

Man of Mystery. 



Member of the Continental Congress. 

Signer of the Declaration of Independence. 

President o£ tJie Provincial Council of Georgia. 





A Brief Biographical Review 



BY 



William Montgomery Clemens 



1921 

WILLIAM M. CLEMENS 

Publisher 



POMPTON LAKES, N. J. 



.0, 
.Q95-C6 



Edition of Two Hundred Numbered Copies, 
of Which This Copy is Number . A-r^. . . , and is 
Signed by the Author. 



.*^ 



BUTTON GWINNETT 

Button Gwinnett, member of the Continental Con- 
gress from Georgia, and Signer of the Declaration of In- 
dependence, like the Man in the Iron Mask, was a man 
of mystery. No patriot of the American Revolution, no 
citizen of the Republic, is as little known, nor is there 
such meagre material in manuscript or printed book, con- 
cerning any individual in American history. He has been 
likened to a meteor, flashing across the universe, and in 
his brief career of scarce half a dozen years small record 
is left to us of his movements and activities during this 
brief period of time. Coming out of the vast unknown, he 
flashes the light of his being upon the world, and fades 
away into an obscurity and a darkness more intense than 
that from which he emerged. A remarkable figure in the 
early history of a great Southern state, we know less of 
him now, than was kno\\ni in the year of 1776, when in 
Philadelphia, he signed the immortal document, that 
makes his name endure for all time. 

We are informed by a writer in the Encyclopedia Brit- 
tanica' that Gwinnett was born in England in 1732 and 
was a merchant in Bristol. Harper's Cyclopedia of United 
States History' says he was born ahoiit 1732. 

A Philadelphia publication' declares that Button 
Gwinnett w^as born in Wales. His surname is no doubt of 
Welsh origin, being almost identical with Gwynnedd, 
which at once recalls to mind the famous Welsh king, 
Owen Gwynnedd. 

1. Werner's Americanized Edition. 

2. Edition of 1893, vol. 1, page 603. 

3. Unrivalled Atlas of the World. Philadelphia Public Ledger Co., 1899. 



The extensive and comprehensive catalogues of books 
in the British Museum contain perhaps every name in 
English literature. There are but two Gwinnetts. In 
1732, Richard Gwinnett published a comedy, The Country 
Squire, and in 1770, appeared The Life, Travels and Ad- 
ventures of Ambrose G^\annett. This was a small pam- 
phlet which ran in various penny editions up to as late 
a period as 1850. In the book, Gwinnett says: "I was 
born in Canterbury, in 1680, where my father dealt in 
hops. There were but two children, myself and a sister 
who married one Sawyer, who in 1710, kept a public house 
in Deal, County Kent." 

This concludes his "life", and rather strange to say, 
in the original entry of the first edition of this pamphlet, 
in the British Museum catalogue, appears the following 
note after the name Ambrose Gwinnett : 

"The Life and Adventures of Ambrose Gwinnett, by 
himself, or rather hy Isaac Bickcrstaff." 

In the year 1709, Sir Richard Steele, under the 
pseudonym of Isaac Bickerstaff, began writing scores of 
shilling-shockers and pamphlets, and in 1711, commenced 
the publication of The Tatler, edited by Isaac Bickerstaff. 
It has been stated that Steele found the name of Bicker- 
staff on a blacksmith's sign and added Isaac to suit his 
fancy. So it would appear that our Ambrose G^vinnett was 
not a real personage, but a creation of Sir Richard Steele. 

If the name of Gwinnett did exist in England in 
1770. it is now quite extinct, and is not to be found in 
British genealogy nor in heraldry. 

The London Post Office Directory, a huge book of 
names, contains no Gwinnett. With the exception of the 
name of the Signer the woi'd does not occur anywhere in 
the United States. The nearest approach is the name of 
a soldier of the Revolutioi. Joseph Gunnett, which is 

4 



found in the list of Virginia soldiers published in 1911, by 
the Virginia State Library. 

There appears to be some doubt as to the first name 
of Gwinnett. The statement has been made that his Chris- 
tian name was Bolton or Bulton, and that an error of the 
printer made it Button. A careful examination of the 
signature of the Signer inclines us to give favor to this 
view. The first name can as easily be read Bulton as 
Button, when we find the first "t" might well be taken for 
a closed ''1". The word Bolton is English, while Button is 
a Yankee corruption of Bouton, which as a family name, 
is of French origin. 

Grwinnett as a family name is thus unknown. There 
is nowhere in encyclopedic or biographic literature 
even the merest hint as to his parentage. After a 
careful study of what is available as to his life and at the 
conclusion of exhaustive research, the inquirer is tempted 
to doubt even the authenticity of his name, with the sur- 
mise that both Button and Gwinnett were cognomens 
deliberately assumed for a purpose unknown to us. 

"We possess no means of knowing (N. D wight, Lives 
of the Signers, page 358) the history of Mr. Gwinnett's 
early life. It is probable however, that it was distin- 
guished by nothing very remarkable." 

Lossing in his Lives of the Signers, (page 227) tells 
US: "The pecuniary means of his parents were limited, 
yet they managed to give him a good, common education." 
N. D wight, Esq., in his Lives of the Signers, (page 358) says 
' ' His parents were respectable, and though their pecuniary 
circumstances were moderate, they gave him the means 
of obtaining an excellent education." Dr. Goodrich, in 
his Lives, makes a mere shifting of w^ords, when he whites 
(page 452) "His parents were respectable in life, and 

5 



gave their son as good an education as their moderate 
circumstances would allow." 

A statement in an official publication of ,the United 
States Government' informs us that young Gwinnett pur- 
sued an academic course, although there is no other 
authority for the assertion. The same publication states 
that he came to the United States in 1765, whereas all other 
biographies give the year as 1770. It is also claimed by 
the same authority that Gwinnett followed commercial 
pursuits in Charleston for a period of three years but 
the business archives of Charleston do not bear out this 
statement. 

In the 3'ear 1768, according to one authority" Gwin- 
nett purchased a plantation on St. Catherine's Island, in 
Georgia, although another authority" says this removal 
was accomplished in 1772. A third writer claims that soon 
after his arrival in Charleston, Gwinnett removed to Savan- 
nah Avhere he was established as a general trader. HarpeiV 
also places the year as 1772, when ''he settled on St. 
Catherine's Island, off the coast of Georgia." And it is 
asserted elsewhere that he engaged in agriculture, but we 
do not know that he conducted his plantation for pleasure 
or for profit. 

In the Magazine of American History, his attitude 
toward Great Britain, at this time, is presented as follows: 
"Mr. Gwinnett had long taken a deep interest in the wel- 
fare of the colonies; but he despaired of a successful re- 
sistance to Great Britain. His sentiments on this point, 
however, underwent a great change, and he became a 
warm advocate for opposing the unjust exactions of the 
mother country." 

4. Congressional Directory for 1911, page 691. 

5. Congressional Directory for 1911, page 691. 

6. Werner's Americanized Encvclopedia Rrittanicn 

7. Harper's Cyclopedi.n of United States History, 1893, vol. 1. page 603 

G 



It is stated in Harper's Cyclopedia that "he was cau- 
tious and doubtful and took no part in political affairs 
until after the war for Independence was begun when he 
became active in the patriot cause." In another volume* 
we read that "he joined the popular party and was con- 
spicuous at Revolutionary committees", which does not 
agree with the Harper assertion that he was "cautious 
and doubtful." 

The Parish of St. John elected Mr. Gwinnett a dele- 
gate to the Continental Congress. St. John was a strong 
hold of patriotism. The colony of Georgia very sparsely 
populated at this period seemed quite inactive in the con- 
troversy with Great Britain and in St. John alone was 
concentrated all the outspoken patriotism in the province. 
The General Assembly having refused to send delegates to 
the Congress of 1774, St. John Parish to all intent separ- 
ated from the province and elected its own representa- 
tive to the Continental Congress. The spirit of indepen- 
dence spread rapidly however, and the whole of Georgia 
gave her vote in 1776, for the freedom of the colonies 
from British rule. 

He was a delegate to the Continental Congress from 
Georgia from 1775 to 1776, and in 1777 w^as a member of 
the Convention to form a State Constitution for Georgia. 
He thus became President of the Provincial Congress of 
Georgia, as well as having signed the Declaration of Inde- 
pendence. 

In Goodrich's Lives of the Signers, we read that 
Gwinnett "was a competitor with Col. Lachlan Mcintosh 
for the office of Brigadier-General, and formed a settled 
hostility to his successful rival. Being afterward presi- 
dent of the Council, he nominated a subordinate officer to 
the command of an expedition against Florida. The ex- 

8. Biographical Annals of the Civil Government of the United States, by 
Charles Lanman. Washington. 1876, page 177. 



pedition failed and by consequence, Mr, Gwinnett failed lo 
be elected Governor in May, 1777. In the mortification 
of his adversary, Mcintosh exulted. In the result Gwin- 
nett challenged him. Fighting at the distance of twelve 
feet both were wounded, and Mr. Gwinnett died of his 
wounds. May, 27, 1777, aged 44. In his miserable death 
may be seen the effects of envy, rivalry and hatred. Had 
he possessed the spirit of the gospel he would not thus have 
perished." 

Follows another account of the causes leading up 
to the duel: "On the death of the President of the Pro- 
vincial Council, Mr. Gwinnett was elected to the vacant 
station. In this situation he seems to have indulged in 
unbecoming hostility towards an old political rival. 
Colonel Mcintosh; adopting several expedients to mortify 
his adversary, and never divesting himself of his embit- 
tered hatred towards him. In an expedition which he had 
projected against East Florida Mr. Gwinnett designed to 
command the Continental troops and militia of Georgia 
himself, thereby excluding Colonel Mcintosh from the com- 
mand even of his own brigade. Just at this period it 
became necessary to convene the legislature. In conse- 
quence of his official duties. Mi-. Gwinnett was prevented 
from proceeding on the expedition. He therefore appointed 
to the command a subordinate officer of ]\TeIntosh's brigade. 
The expedition failed entirely, and contributed to defeat 
the election of Mr. Gwinnett as governor. This failure 
blasted his hopes, and brought his political career to a 
close. Mcintosh was foolish enough to exult in the morti- 
fication of his adversary. The consequence was that Mr. 
Gwinnett presented him a challenge. They fought at the 
distance of only twelve feet. Both were severely wounded. 
The wound of Mr. Gwinnett proved fatal. He expired on 



the 27th of May, in the forty-fifth year of his age, — a 
melancholy instance of the misery produced by harboring 
in the heart the absorbing passion of rancorous envy." 

General Lachlan Mcintosh was born near Inverness, 
in Scotland, March 17, 1725. In 1736 his father joined 
General Oglethorpe in his expedition to Georgia, and with 
about a hundred Highlanders settled in what is now 
Mcintosh County, on the Altamaha river. William Allen 
in his American Biography, 1832, writes: "Lachlan was 
the principal military officer of the Province of Georgia, 
and in 1776, was appointed Brigadier General. Having 
murdered Mr. Gwinnett in a duel, the event, instead of 
banishing him from the army, was the cause of his removal 
to the north. He was a member of Congress in 1774. He 
died at Savannah, February 20. 1806, aged 80 years." 

In a sketch of Gen. Mcintosh in Harper's Cyclopedia, 
appears the following: "Gwinnett persecuted Mcintosh 
beyond endurance and he called the persecutor a scoun- 
drel." Another writer' sa,ys "Gwinnett took advantage 
of his official position to subject General Mcintosh and his 
family to a series of malicious persecutions — that Gwin- 
nett was a man of bad passions, unrestrained by any hon- 
orable principles. ' ' 

"Native born Englishmen," says Lossing (page 229 
in his Lives of the Signers) "were in the habit of regard- 
ing the colonists as inferior to themselves, and they were 
apt to assume a bearing toward them highly offensive. In 
some degree Mr. Gwinnett was obnoxious to this charge, 
and he looked upon his rapid elevation in public life, as 
an acknowledgement of his superiority. These feelings 
were too thinly covered not to be seen by the people when 
he was President of the Council, and it soon engendered 

9. Washington and the Generals of the American Revolution. Philadel- 
phia, 1866, vol, 1. 



amciug the natives a jealousy that was fully reciprocated 
by him. This was doubtless the prime cause of all the 
difficulties which surrounded him toward the close of his 
life, and brought him to his tragical death." 

"His rapid promotions had accumulated upon him. 
(D wight, Lives of the Signers, page 360) within one year 
after his first appearance in public life. But it will be 
remembered that he was a Native Englishman; had come 
into a colony and among a people of whose real character, 
Englishmen knew but little ; for whom they were accus- 
tomed to indulge a feeling that partook very little of re- 
spect. * * " the rapid elevation of a foreigner, a native 
of a country with which the colonies were at open war, 
and who had resided but a few years among them, began 
to excite jealousies among some native citizens who were 
candidates for popular favor. ' ' 

Rev. George White in his Historical Collections of 
Georgia, speaks of "an unfortunate result of an unfortun- 
ate misunderstanding between two gentlemen." Another 
writer declares there was a divided sentiment in Georgia 
at the time of the duel, and for many months thereafter 
the friends of Gwinnett were powerful enough to cause 
the arrest of Mcintosh on a charge of murder. He was 
tried and acquitted but thought it prudent to leave the 
State. Among the most influential friends of Gwinnett was 
Dr. Lyman Hall, himself a Signer of the Declaration of 
Independence. Dr. Hall found it very difficult to keep 
the patriots of Georgia in an united body. For a con- 
siderable time the immediate effects of the Gwinnett-Mc- 
intosh duel were so disastrous that the cause of liberty 
itself was endangered. It was not until 1779 that Mc- 
intosh returned to Georgia, when he took part in the siege 
of Savannah. 

Thei-e has heen much of conjecture as to the domestic 
10 



life of Button Gwinnett. Of his family affairs we have 
but the slightest knowledge. 

Under the title of The Lives of the Signers, there have 
been volumes published bearing the names as authors, of 
John Sanderson, Rev. Charles A. Goodrich, N. Dwight, 
Benjamin J. Lossing and a few others. The first of these 
John Sanderson, in his Biography of the Signers of the 
Declaration of Independence, Philadelphia, 1828, says on 

page 119 : 

"Having married in England, Gwinnett resolved to 

emigrate to America." 

There appears to have been no authority for this 
assertion, and subsequently, when Dr. Goodrich issued his 
Lives of the Signers, he reiterates this statement in the 
following words : (page 452.) 

''Some time after his marriage in England, he re- 
moved to America, selecting Charleston, as a place of set- 
tlement. ' ' 

Then follows N. Dwight, Esq., in the year 1840, wdth 
his Lives of the Signers, in which he says on page 358 : 

"Soon after his marriage he resolved to remove to 
America. ' ' 

And follows dear old Ben Lossing in his Signers of 
the Declaration, New York, 1848, page 227, 

"He was apprenticed to a merchant in Bristol, and 
after completing his term of service, he married, and com- 
menced business on his own account. Allured, by the 
promise of wealth and distinction in America, he resolved 
to emigrate hither and arrived in Charleston in the 
year 1770." 

We observe that these esteemed historians give no 
authority for the statement that Gmnnett was married 
when he came to America. Rather the first author, finding 
a lack of material in the data concerning Gwinnett, deals 

11 



in mere surmise and his confreres who follow him, repeat 
and copy his assertion. 

There is nothing of record, legally or otherwise, to show 
that Mr. Gwinnett was ever married or that he was the 
father of offspring, save a letter written in 1775 to Benja- 
min Sheftel of Savannah, the only letter written by Gwin- 
nett known to exist. In his epistle he speaks of his wife in 
the third person and also mentions a Miss Betsy Gwinnett 
who may have been either a sister or a daughter. The full 
text of this solitary letter left us by Gwinnett is as follows: 
"Mrs. Gwinnett begs leave to present Compliments to 
Mr. & Mrs. Sheftel hopes Mrs. Sheftel is recovered. She 
wishes Mr. Sheftel & Miss Sheftel a pleasant journey & 
hopes they will see Betsy Gwdnnett there. Mrs. Gwinnett 
begs it as a particular favor & to hear from them on their 
return from Charles Town. She has sent the makers name 
& number of her watch to Mr. Levy Sheftel. Mr. Jackson 
London 2466 — hope he will please to do me the kindness 
to bring it having a Letter from Mr. Foley where to apply 
for it." 

With address: "To Mr. Sheftel in Savannah." 
There appears to have been no will or other document 
naming surviving wife or children, although, we learn 
from Lossiug (Lives of the Signers, page 229) "Mr. Gwin- 
nett left a wife and several children, but they did not sur- 
vive him." D wight (page 362, Lives of the Signers) says: 
"He left a widow and several young children behind him." 
Among tlie collectors of autograph letters, the signa- 
ture of Button Gwinnett is considered a great rarity. The 
letter to Benjamin Sheftel, previously mentioned, was 
placed on sale at auction in New York City, in January, 
1921, and was sold for $1025.00. This was the most im- 
portant Gwinnett item ever sold at public sale. There 

12 



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